This is a restaurant that I have passed by at-least 100 times! And for some reason, I have never eaten there or expressed any desire to even look inside. It had always been heavily curtained, making it impossible to even get a small peek in. Walking back and forth on Macdougal Street during the time when I used to work in the area, my imagination had entertained ideas of dark suited gentlemen, fedoras and pistols, sitting in a dimly lit back room within its curtained exteriors. The fact that I had never seen anyone ever walk in or out of the restaurant seemed to prove my point.
So when I heard through the grapevine that the owners of a favourite restaurant in NY; The Cook-Shop, Vicki Freeman and Marc Meyer had reopened it ....I was intensely curious. Even more so when they kept the name and the cuisine of southern France from the original restaurant.
This would be the perfect place to meet Sandrine and Jean Claude Gracia, two friends of mine that I hadn't seen for a while. Jean Claude’s mother is a well known chef from Gascony, and Sandrine his wife has admirable knowledge of both food and wine and hails from Provence.
I was in for a surprise when I walked in apologetically 15 minutes late. The restaurant’s French doors were all open and very inviting. In-fact you could see the restaurant in all its beauty. Mahogany panelling, with the deep rich colours of Provençal France on the walls, a large mirror, a stunningly displayed marble bar and the heady perfume of a hundred flowers. Perfect for a lovely evening! In-fact a smaller room in the back of the restaurant has been converted into a garden with a canopy for a ceiling and is very romantic. Looking around with admiration I realised this was such a change from the previously enclosed look that it took the three of us a few minutes to take in. A woman in purdah had removed her coverings and demonstrated a face of inequitable beauty.
After much contemplation of the menu and life in general, we ordered some food. Besides the arrival of the first course, I was looking forward to what the two would tell me about the food. I get so critical when I am at an Indian restaurant, growing up on the cuisine most of my life - it is very difficult not to be critical of one's native food prepared in a foreign country. So, I patiently listened to what Jean Claude and Sandrine had to say. The dandelion salad seemed rather simple, and JC decided that his merguez sausage was slightly underdone. Our second course was the beef daube which Madammoiselle Sandrine thought had too much fat in it, my mussels seemed ok and the sauce was quite delicious. Both JC and Sandrine refused to believe that the food was from the southern part of France or even cooked by a French chef.
The chef is Lynn McNeely, late of Barbuto with a year's stint in France. The food did seem closer to northern African cuisine rather then Provençal to us. Food from Provence includes a lot of fish and fresh sea food, zucchini, garlic, eggplant, olives and lavender amongst other seasonal produce.. There is a reason this cuisine is called "cuisine du soleil" or (cuisine of the sun). We did order dessert, a rhubarb tart which didn’t make a big impact but neither did the chocolate almond tart. The only area in which we couldn't find any fault with was the wine and beer list, courtesy of Richard Luftig who is the Wine Director at the Cook Shop. He has managed to put together an attractive wine list with prices that are very reasonable. Along with an excellent beer, we had a glass of Bandol and another of a Pinot Noire which were quite delightful. The service was lovely, everyone was warm, friendly and very knowledgeable about everything on the menu.
This is a lovely place to meet friends, enjoy a glass of wine and admire the evening breeze. Moreover, it is very conveniently located on a quiet corner of Prince and MacDougal streets. Away from the hustle and bustle of the metropolis, you can almost mistake it for Grasse. There are soo many flowers...!
38 Macdougal St
New York, NY 10012
Tel: (212) 475-7500
